In a shocking incident, a four-month-old baby girl died after falling accidentally from the second floor of City Center mall in Banjara Hills here on Thursday.
The baby is the granddaughter of the maternal uncle of Hyderabad Police Commissioner A.K. Khan. The baby's mother went to the mall to purchase clothes when the accident occurred in the evening. She was carrying the baby and about to set foot on the escalator to come down when one end of her dress got stuck in the escalator. As the mother lost balance, the baby slipped from her arms and fell from above 15-foot height. “The baby's head landed first on the floor resulting in grievous injuries,” the Commissioner told The Hindu over phone. The infant was rushed to a near-by corporate hospital where doctors declared her brought dead. The Commissioner visited the spot and inquired how the accident occurred. He recalled that a few days ago the baby and her mother came to a family get-together organised by him recently. “It is an unfortunate incident and difficult to console the baby's mother,” Mr. Khan said, sounding sad.
First incident
This is the first time the death of an infant in such a freak accident was reported in a mall in the city. Initially, rumours did round that the baby slipped from the escalator. However, the Commissioner said the infant slipped after her mother's dress got stuck in the escalator.
The Banjara Hills police did not respond to repeated calls to ascertain if any guard or attendant was available at the elevator to help or caution persons boarding it. “A case of suspicious death would be registered and investigated into,” the West Zone Additional DCP, Ravinder Reddy, said.
Whatever be the reasons behind the incident, the baby's death would be a grim reminder for all people to be more careful, a police officer remarked.
